Chapter 14

Lawrence's bedroom

Lawrence stood and watched Jennifer, she was sleeping very soundly and he was not about to disturb her. Drawing up a chair by her bedside, he sat and got comfortable. He had remembered earlier how animated she had been with Curtis Turlock and it had caused some ire to rise in him. He recognized the jealousy of watching her react to another man as she had and he had become angry. Settling back to get comfortable, he rested his head against the chair's back and closed his eyes. He was tried, he had been in the air for ten hours and then had this business dinner already planned with the heads of some very powerful and influential banking, crime, and oil rich countries.

If he could arrange a conglomerate with them involved they would be able to corner the market on most major oil producers in the world. They could easily monopolize a lot of different countries and they all could become extremely richer and more powerful than any of them had ever considered or thought. He was tired and he had exhausted himself with unnecessary worry on his flight back. Gregory and he had worked out a schedule of who would do what and who should attend what meeting.

Closing his eyes he had promised himself he would only rest for a few moments. He had drifted off to sleep when the door to his room opened and Erika entered carrying her shoes in her hand. They dangled from her fingertips as she walked over to the now sleeping Lawrence, bent down and gently brushed her lips against his neck, making sure there was an imprint of her lipstick on his collar and his neck. Smiling she looked at Jennifer resting in the bed, smiled and thought, "That will upset you more you little bitch. He belonged to me before you and he belongs to me now." Turning she tiptoed from the room, closing the door quietly behind her.

Jennifer opened her eyes, rolling her head to the side she saw him sitting in the chair and she was very touched by her husband's show of concern. That he had chosen to sleep by her bedside in a chair to not disturb her had touched her heart.. Throwing off the covers, she looked down and saw she was wearing one of her gowns, stepping quietly to the floor, she walked to his side and bent to kiss his cheek and froze. There on his collar was smudged lipstick and a half lip imprint from that lipstick. She frowned and felt as if she had been stabbed in her stomach.

Stepping back from him, she turned and walked from the room, leaving his door opened. Walking to her bedroom, she let her tears flow from her body and she was more than upset, she felt she had been physically assaulted by this affront. She wanted to run away from here. She sat on the edge of the bed and tried to think of where she could go. She knew it had taken six hours for her to ride with Sister Anna to the old Estate, she was just as sure it would take her almost all night walking to get there. She knew she could do it; she just needed some good walking shoes and old clothing.

Digging through her dressing room, she found a box of items that had been packed and marked 'charity'. Pulling it out she was surprised to see the clothing in the box were her size and they were pretty rough looking, a pair of jeans and a sweater that looked about right to get her past the guards. She had watched their habits over the past couple of weeks and knew when they took smoke breaks and changed shifts, even with the increase in guards she had figured out how she could easily get past their defenses if all she did was take her time and wait for a break.

She was sure she had earlier after Lawrence had come in and they had made love, she had remembered her earrings were left in his room, so when she had gone back to the room, she had over heard two of the guard talking about going into town for their night off. They had agreed to meet in the garage and they would take one of the cars to go visit their family. If she hurried she could get to the garage and figure out which car they were going to take. Usually the extra errand car was parked in the fifth bay next to the wall. So it would be fairly simple to go out get in the trunk and block the trunk from being locked. Dressing quickly, she tied her hair up on top of her head, and waited for the hallway to be cleared.

Inching along the hallway into the shadows she waited for the guard to pass making his rounds. Then she darted across the hallway into another alcove and pressed her back to the wall and felt the wall given. Turning she looked into the dimly lit area and discovered the house had secret passages. This seemed to trigger a flash in her memory of another house that had a secret elevator and passages. Feeling her heart race, she stepped into the alcove and began to walk along the interior of the passages. Pausing she could feel a soft breeze blowing down the passage, and began to follow the breeze. She could hear the surf and feel the ocean's breeze waft over her body.

Walking forward she smiled, she was at the very rear entrance to the private gardens that graced the back of the house. Turning she looked around for signs of any guardsmen patrolling the area. Not seeing them, she darted to the beach and ducked down into the bushes. Her heart was still racing and she knew time was of the essence but she figured if she could walk along the beach, she could cut up through the dunes and hike to the nearest roadway. She just had to hide as she walked along the roadway so she would not be caught. She could not face Lawrence and his cruelty for betraying her love.

Along a back road to the Capitol City

Jennifer had checked her watch and knew she had been walking for almost three hours. She was sure that by now that they had discovered she was missing and she would need to seek shelter soon. She was tried but she was also hurt. Never would she had thought or expected that Lawrence would do this to her and their child. Staggering along the roadway she had noticed this must have been the service road the linen truck had used. So vehicles driving this road she was sure was next to none. Up ahead she saw a smattering of lights, which denoted the outskirts of the town. She sighed, if she could get to the church, perhaps they would let her use a car and she could have them report it stolen and they could come pick it up.

Walking up towards a building that looked like a service station, Jennifer smiled, someone had left their car running while they ran inside, she would take their car and drive off with it and leave it along the roadway. She just needed to put some distance between her and this place. She could not think properly, all she knew was she could not face Lawrence. Creeping up to the running car, she slid into the front seat from the passenger side. Shifting quickly to the wheel of the car, she threw the car into drive, held the wheel against her chest and stomped on the gas pealing away form the gas station and from sight.

Looking into the rearview mirror she laughed, she had just stolen the guards' car; they must have gone for a bathroom break and had left the car running. Driving for almost ten miles she pulled over readjusting the seat and set the car into gear and began to drive in the darkening night along the route Sister Anna had taken earlier. She was feeling pretty proud of what she had accomplished and had been so afraid of being caught that she had not had time to mourn the loss of the love she had shared with Lawrence.

She had driven for a couple of hours and was sure she had heard a helicopter over head and had pulled under a clump of trees on the roadway. Shutting off her lights she was sure she had not been seen. Opening the door, she sighed. She knew she had another five or six miles to walk on foot. Leaving the car door open, she began to hike towards the old estate house. She could see what was there and maybe find a place to stay until she could decide what she wanted to do. She was alone, lost and now she was trapped.

Shoulders slump, chin tucked, Jennifer began to follow an old trail that was overgrown with foliage and roots. Tripping for the tenth time, she finally just lay down on the ground and closed her eyes and began to cry. She was miserable and she hated this feeling. All she could see was the way Lawrence smiled when he spoke to her stomach and their child. She laid her fingertips over her stomach and gently caressed her stomach. She had wished she had brought a sweater when she left, she was chilled and very tired. She knew she was not thinking clearly when she made her escape from the estate but she had to improvise and go with what she had.

Closing her eyes, she felt exhausted and slowly began to drift off. Her dreams were conflicted and then the newest part of her life was a soft seductive sounding voice telling her what she needed to remember. Curling over her side she balled into a fetal position trying to preserve her heat. She felt hands lift her and hold her against their chest and a soft voice spoke in her ear. "Why are you out here?" She could feel the tickle of a beard against her face and movement. Then she felt her body placed on a soft bed and covered. She wrapped her fingers around the blanket and pulled it close to her body and sighed. Softly she spoke to the unknown helper. "Thank you."

Marcus Palatino was a drifter on the island. He had made him a nice comfortable home in one of the many caves this island had created centuries earlier. He smiled watching her hug the heat of the blanket to her tiny body. Her face was smudged with dirt and her clothing was a shambles. She did not look like one of the normal islanders that he had been able to identify. She was more refined and lost in these clothing on this path. He had been raiding the old Estate for weeks and had managed to put together several pieces of furniture from the wreckage. The area had become very comfortable with what he had salvaged and had made the cave appear very homey.

He was glad he had brought out two beds to put in his three-section cave. He was pretty sure she would not appreciate him trying to share her blanket or bed if he had tried to sleep next to her. So, he had collapsed on the sofa and watched the fire burn its low embers in his fire pit. "Who are you? Why were you out there on that path?" He sighed and slid down on the couch pulling a blanket over his body. It would have to wait for morning. Then he would take his dirt bike into town and pick up some supplies and maybe by then she would be ready to talk. Closing his eyes he drifted off to sleep.

Next morning

Jennifer awoke in the early morning hours, sat up seeing a man sleeping on a sofa, she slipped out of the comfortable bed, and quietly crept from the cave, she looked around and recognized the area she was in and knew if she took the path that branched to the left, turning she peered up and saw the large rock she had stood against when she allowed the Red Guard pick her up in the helicopter. She could easily make her way down to the old estate house and find refuge there until she could figure out what she wanted to do. Taking off and feeling ravenous, she found her path that turned and twisted like a switchbacks to the point where she had been two days ago.

Finding a familiar route, she hiked down the pathway until she could see the wreckage of Poldie Estate and smiled and was relieved. Perhaps there she could find some water, and something to eat. She slowly made her way to the rear of the estate and paused, she was sure she thought she saw movement by the front gate area. Ducking down she peeked through the foliage. Then she saw her; Sister Anna-Teresa was coming out of the building's front entrance. "What is she doing here?"

Jennifer watched her pace back and forth and look around and then get in her car and drive off. She had looked worried. Standing up, she began to walk down the pathway to the rear of the house and stopped, she saw something move around the kitchen area. Walking slowly up to the rear kitchen area, she stopped down and saw it, a small black and white kitten. "Why hello there little one. Where did you come from?" From the interior of the house one more kitten bounded out and tackled the black and white kitten and Jennifer chuckled. "Well it seems there are two of you and you look like you are about six weeks old."

She wondered if the mother had abandoned them. Sitting down she called to them. "Come here sweet little ones. Come here." She clicked her tongue to the roof of her mouth and motioned with her fingers. The two kittens in their playful rough housing stopped and turned sat on their haunches. The black and white on began to inch towards her to sniff her fingers. "You know if you offer them food, they will be more than likely to come to you."

Jennifer turned to see the man that had been sleeping on the sofa earlier standing over her. Dropping down he reached into his backpack, pulled out a tin of meat and opened the can and inched it towards the curious kitty. The mate to the first kitten, which was solid black, trotted up to the tin, sniffed and then began to eat the meat, purring and growling while it ate, "Thought so." The man opened another tin and set it down for the black and white kitten. "The mother probably dropped them here and let them be on their own."

"That is sad they won't last long out here if they are not protected." She was sure she saw large predatory birds circling overhead earlier and they would be a perfect dinner for the birds. "Do you think they are wild?" She turned and saw his features were mostly covered in a heavy beard. His hair was longer and unkempt, his clothing clean but worn well to his body. His eyes were an incredible blue and his smile was prefect so he took good care of his teeth.

"I think they were tamed or you would not have been able to get this close to them. If you like we could gather them up and take them back to the cave and let them chase cave mice." He was teasing her as he waited for them to finish eating. He watched her eyes light up with excitement at the thought.

"Really? That would be so nice. I . . . " she heard the helicopter's approach, she knocked him down and rolled with him away from the open and under the brush near the back of the house. He was surprised at her reaction to the helicopter and waited for it to do a pass over and once the sound of the rotary blades were off in the distance he pushed up and helped her stand.

"I take it they are looking for you?" She nodded and looked to the kittens that had only been minorly distracted by the sudden fall and rolling sensation from the two legged big creatures. They had resumed eating again. "Then lets collect your kitties and go back to the cave. You will be safe there and you can tell me all about that." He nodded to the last direction the helicopters had flown. Without preamble he scooped up the two kittens, which was in the process of licking their paws as a form of a bath after their meal, with a hiss and a squeal he dumped them into his backpack's netted area. The two curled on top of each other and waited to see what was about to happen.

"Come on follow me. They will be circling back in twenty minutes and we should be back at the cave before they do their next pass over." He hooked her arm and tugged her with him. They walked for about ten minutes and he smiled, handed her the kittens in his backpack and uncovered his dirt bike. Getting on the bike, he waited for her to get on the back. "Put the back pack on and crawl on. We have about ten minutes before they come back."

Jennifer slid the backpack on, threw her leg over the back of the bike and seated herself waiting for him to take off. He shifted gears, and gave the bike some gas and they were off like a shot. She could hear the fear in the yowling of the two kittens and knew it would take them a while to settle down once they were back at the cave. They hit the opening of the cave with the bike just as the blades from the copter were heard overhead. Jennifer felt her heart racing. "Duck down and stay back in the shadows." He whispered hoping they did not have listening capabilities or heat seeking equipment.

Marcus' cave

Jennifer sat still and waited for the pass over to be complete. Gently she pulled the backpack around and held the two kittens close to her chest. Feeling their first reaction was to extend claws into her sweater. She spoke softly to them. "It is okay little ones. I won't hurt you. I promise." She set the pack down on the ground and lifted her leg over the bike. Taking care to not get scratched, she started to take them out when Marcus stopped her. "If you want to keep them here, lets release them in the rear part of the cave and let me give them some milk. That will keep their attention and perhaps forgive us for their rescue."

He prid the backpack from her hands and walked deeper into the cave. Jennifer stood up and followed him. She noticed he was broad shouldered, dark hair, blue eyes and tall. He would be about Lawrence's height. Walking to a bed in the rear part of the cave, Jennifer paused and her heart skipped a beat, she knew that bed. She had seen it before and for some odd reason it frightened her. Shaking her head she sighed deeply and followed him to the bed. "When I tell you to release them, open the flap. Back away and let them escape on their own."

Jennifer nodded, waited and watched him walk back into the main part of the cave and then come back in with a large bowl of what appeared to be milk. "Now." He said with a soft voice. Jennifer unhooked the strap, and stood back. Watching the two kittens slowly make their way out of the backpack. They were at first surprised by the bed and the softness of the bed, then their noses twitched and the black and white one jumped down and scampered to the milk. The black one followed and went to the other side of the milk. Once again they were purring and growling as they drank.

Jennifer gingerly stepped past them and reentered the main part of the cave. "Thank you for hiding me." She smiled tightly and ran her hands into her back pockets. "I have been running most the night and was tired. I can't thank you enough for giving me shelter." She walked over to the sofa and sat on the edge of the cushions. "My name is Jennifer." She waited for him to introduce himself.

"I am Marcus, nice to meet you Jennifer are you wanted? Have you broken the laws of the island?" Looking at her, he could not see her as a criminal but she sure was acting like someone on the run from some authority. He watched her smile tensely and then looked at her hands laid primly in her lap. Her chin tucked to her chest he knew she was debating on telling him what was her story.

"Unfortunately, the problem is I am not wanted. At least that was the impression I got last night, when I found my husband had been unfaithful to me." She was glad she had taken her wedding band off and her engagement ring. "I believe he had an affair and then flaunted it in front of me. I could not believe he would do this to our child or me." She had sniffed and felt her vision blur with her renewed tears.

She saw a Kleenex poked under her nose. Taking it she wiped her nose and offered a soft 'thank you'. She stood and walked to the chamber entrance to what could easily be called a spare bedroom for this cave dwelling. The kittens had jumped back up on the bed and curled into a ball and were fast asleep. She heard him come up from behind her and look over at the kittens.

"I had intended to put you in there last night but thought you might wake up and be afraid. So I put you in my bed. Look, I have to go into the village and pick up some food, and I will get some food for our little friends there. Why don't you do like they are doing and go in there and take a nap? I am sure you are still tired and you will be safe here. No one knows about these caves and they are fairly well concealed by the overhang over head. You really have to come up here to find it and since I have been here for the past month no one comes this far, they usually go as far as the bluff."

She smiled nodded her head and walked into the room. Curling up on the bed, she watched the kittens get up and walk to her and curl against her body looking for body heat. Gently she began to run her fingertips over their soft fur. Closing her eyes she felt her body relax and she was fast asleep. Perhaps in this sleep she would finally find the rest she needed and feeling two small purring kittens against her stomach she smiled and curled in to them to keep them warm.

West Shore Village

Alamaina

Marcus drove in to the market place with his basket mounted on his bike. Sliding off his bike he walked around and found fresh fruit, fresh fish, some vegetables and dry goods. Packing them on his bike, he walked to the nearest little market and found some dry cat food, and canned sardines, meats and other tasty treats to feed the kittens. Grabbing some milk, he walked back to the open-air market and heard a radio announcement about the missing Queen of Alamaina. He paused to listen and then it dawned on him. Looking up he saw two large expensive cars that shouted secret police with men dressed in expensive suits handing out flyers.

One walked to him, "If you see her or find her, its worth 100,000 dollars. She is missing." Looking down, Marcus was shocked; it was Jennifer, except on this flyer her name was printed as Katarina Alamain. He was shocked to discover he was hosting royalty in his cave. Taking the picture he nodded, tucked it into his pocket and got on his dirt bike and headed back to the cave. One hundred thousand dollars was a lot of money. This was something he would have to think about.